Executive Director’s Note

By Julia Michaels

In June, I shared that Powered by Publics would undertake efforts to define, measure, and demonstrate our commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion rooted in data and dialogue that helps APLU and Powered by Publics make real progress on these issues. We recently shared with you the Powered by Publics Commitment to Equity.

This commitment was developed in response to feedback from cluster lead presidents and members of Powered by Publics. It represents a critical step toward advancing Powered by Publics’ strategic priority: “taking explicit action to pursue educational equity for low-income, first-generation, and students of color.” As we take new actions around this commitment, I’d like to thank Powered by Publics’ Alcione Frederick who has spearheaded this work. Over the coming months, we will share additional tools and resources with you, grounded in this commitment to equity, to help guide your clusters’ work to advance equitable outcomes for students.

In addition to our commitment to equity, I hope you’ll find other resources in this month’s newsletter valuable:

• A learning memo from the High Pell cluster on advancing financial wellness programming to support student success.
• A recording from the Powered by Publics Learning Event on Foundational Course DFW Rates, Equity Gaps, and Progress to Degree.
• An article profiling how institutions can use Curricular Analytics to address unnecessary curricular complexity and boost student success.
• A new NASFAA toolkit on addressing implicit bias in financial aid.
• An August 24 ACUE webinar on meeting students where they are amidst potential learning loss.